Luis Valdez began working in Chicano theater in the 1960s alongside the Chicano farmworkers’ rights movement. Chicano theater had previously decreased in the mid-20th century, particularly due to its emphasis on bilingual script and adapting culturally to Anglo-American audiences. Chicano theater, served multitudes of themes that Mexican-Americans dealt with, including the Vietnam War and past racial violence. Valdez’s Zoot Suit is one of the most exemplary pieces of Chicano theater because of its incorporation of the Spanish language, Spanish musical pieces, and tackling issues of race and ethnicity The emphasis on the role of songs and musical pieces stems from some of the earliest amateur pieces from the 19th century. There is also an emphasis on the pre-Columbian Chicano folklore of the Aztec – embodied partially by the character of The Pachuco. The Pachuco also fits the theme of exploring the “grey area” between stark evil and stark good, and expresses the difficulty of finding the Chicano identity in 1970s America. This cultural battle is something that exists as a Chicano theater topic even into modern works.